Leaders of defence committees from nine countries gather for security forum in Tallinn

Kalev Stoicescu, Chairman of the National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia), which is organising the forum, said that parliaments in all democratic countries had an important role in the organisation of national defence, and closer cooperation between allies was vital both now and in the foreseeable future. He was delighted that the members of the annual cooperation format – Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Poland and Germany – would be represented at the forum, and that, for the first time, the Netherlands would take part as an observer.

The forum will be held in the Conference Hall of the Riigikogu on Thursday. The discussions will focus on collective defence, the increasing of defence spending, and regional defence cooperation, as well as on Russia’s ongoing war of aggression in Ukraine and its implications for the international security architecture. Undersecretary for Defence Policy of the Ministry of the Defence of Estonia Tuuli Duneton and Undersecretary for Political Affairs of the Ministry of the Foreign Affairs of Estonia Martin Roger will give an overview of Estonia’s positions. Lieutenant General Bertrand Toujouse, Commander of French Forces Europe/Commander French LANDCOM, who is on a visit to Estonia, will participate in the forum as a special guest.

The leaders of the National Defence Committees will also discuss the priorities and challenges of defence and security policy more broadly and talk about the steps needed to achieve a militarily strong Europe in the shortest possible terms. On Friday, the leaders of the National Defence Committees will visit Ämari Airbase, where one of NATO’s Baltic Air Policing aviation units is located.

Leaders of the National Defence Committees of the parliaments of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland and Sweden will participate in the forum. Chair of the National Defence Committee of the Netherlands will attend the forum as an observer. Representatives of Germany and France will also take part in the forum held in Tallinn.

The National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu has held annual working meetings with the National Defence Committees of the Baltic States since 1998. From 2011, the representatives of the National Defence Committees of the of the Nordic Countries, Germany and Poland have also been taking part in these meetings.

Riigikogu Press Service
Karin Kangro
+372 631 6356, +372 520 0323
karin.kangro@riigikogu.ee
Questions: press@riigikogu.ee

Link uudisele: Leaders of defence committees from nine countries gather for security forum in Tallinn

Source: Parliament of Estonia